A. ...tell her you won't leave for the pool until she takes the socks off and puts her sandals on.

B. ...don't want to squash her budding interest in fashion. You let her wear the socks and hope that her latest outfit will land her on What Not to Wear, and after Stacy and Clinton get over their heart palpitations, she'll get a whole new wardrobe.

C. ...don't even notice her socks because your son and his friend have taken all the couch cushions off and are using them like a trampoline, you teenager is begging you to let her go to her friend's house, and 2 of your other kids are throwing their toothbrushes at each other for some odd reason.

Your 5-year-old son asks you if he can have a mohawk. You...

A. ...put your foot down and inform him, in no uncertain terms, that you will NOT let him look like a punk.

B. ...realize it's just hair and hair grows out. You know this is a sign of self-expression so you take him to the barber to get his mohawk.

C. ... tell him, "Sure!" then totally forget about it until you see the pile of hair on the floor and you discover that his brother went ahead and gave him a, well, um, it's sort of like a mohawk.

Your 5-year-old scales the shelves in the garage to get the lighter fluid and a lighter, then he proceeds to try to burn the garage to the ground light the sidewalk on fire. You...

A. ... freak out, spank his butt, send him to his room, and threaten to send him to juvenile hall.

B. ... say, "Eh, the garage is falling apart anyway. It could use some major remodeling."

C. ... decide this is the perfect excuse to invite some hot firemen over to flex and pose have a little talk with your son.

Your baby drops her pacifier on the ground. You...

A. ...pick it up, put it in a special pacifier pouch, take it home and run it through the dishwasher to sanitize it.

B. ... pour some bottled water on the pacifier to clean it off.

C. ... pick it up out of the mud, wipe it on your shirt, pop it back in baby's mouth and assure yourself that germs build up the immune system.

Your 13-year-old daughter asks if she can meet a boy at the pool. You...

A. ... say, "No way, Missy! Now, put on your burqa and sit down and watch those Little House on the Prairie DVDs I got you!"

B. ... understand that she's growing up and let her have the freedom to meet a boy in a public place, trusting that you've taught her well.

C. ... say, "Yes! And take your brothers and sisters with you!" then go take a nap in peace and quiet.

I was going to assign points to each answer, but I decided that, much like Who's Line Is It Anyway?, the points don't matter. All I will say is that Clay is now sporting a mohawk.

Mohawks are making a come back in a BIG way. My 5 year old son got one back in April. He was the only one who had one at the start of summer camp this year. Now we are almost to the end of summer camp (11 weeks later) and I have seen at least 20 other boys at this same camp, with mohawks. I like to think my son is a trend setter. LOL I have also seen a few men with mohawks lately too. I think Clay looks adorable with his mohawk. Are you going to keep it flat, or stand it up? If you want to spike it/stand it up, you must go to Target and buy "Hair Glue." Yes, actual glue for hair. It works wonders! I was going to post a picture of my son's mohawk in this comment, but I don't think I can. Wait, I think I can link you to my facebook picture of him. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1207954001&ref=profile#/photo.php?pid=30533973&id=1207954001

Mohawks are fun for little boys! :) My son has gotten to have a mohawk for the summer the past 2 years. It's his "fun summer hair". He knows that it gets cut off right before school starts and he's okay with that. He's going into 1st grade. I tried to let my daughter have fun summer hair too. I tried using Kool-aid to dye her hair fun colors. It doesn't work very well in the summer though....the pool water just washes it out too fast. I might do it in Sept since she's only in preschool. I think Clay's hair looks great! :)

I had to giggle as I read this. I only have 4 kids, but they are all girls. As I gave my answers, I knew they were most likely the same as yours, and I was waiting to see the picture of Clay at the end! Thanks for making my day AND for once again reaffirming that I am not alone in this little journey of raising future leaders of the free world!

I must be the most uptight mom that reads your blog! I answered A to most of the questions and I would have died if my son had gotten a mohawk. What's next - a mullet? (I rank those two haircuts in the same category.) I've got to ease up, I know. I guess the more kids you have, you learn quickly you have to pick your battles, huh? (can you tell I only have 2?)

Ok, that totally makes me feel better about the self haircut my 6 year old gave himself a few days ago. We told him he'd have to have a buzz cut because he cut a section off of his bangs smack in the front of his forehead. Little stinker. I have to say just before he did it, he did give me a warning by telling me, "Mommy, I need a haircut." I told him we were going to go in a few days with daddy, but apparently that wasn't soon enough for him.

So what kind of a whack-job mom am I that I had two As and two Cs? Oh, that's right, I think I read somewhere: inconsistent mom -- the very worst kind for kids. They never know *WHAT* my reaction is going to be. (Hey, it keeps them on their toes, right? I prefer to think of it as "choosing my battles.")

This is just too funny. I had to answer C to every one, because I really did/would go there. The pacifier was my favorite, and reminded me of working up my saliva to get all the grit off for my youngest way back when. Long story short, no "paci" no "nappy" - just a constant drone of fitful wails till we got somewhere to clean it off. We were at the beach and I was soon to be driving a Caravan with 8 children and 3 very sun-burnt, burned-out, exhausted Moms the 8 miles through rush hour traffic (we're talkin' at least an hour in bumper to bumper)at the height of the "Cold War" in the Tidewater area of Virginia. What can I say? I'm with you on the "build up the immune system." To this day this baby (now 32) never gets sick - broken bones and annual casts, but never sick.

So how did Clay really get the mohawk? Was your answer B or C? Personally, I'm not a big fan of mohawks, so I'm hoping one of your kids did it. Otherwise, that means you took him to the barbershop and gave him that haircut on purpose! (Sorry to be the only one not gushing about how great mohawks are. I wonder if my comment will even be published...)

I have to tell you... I sent my boyfriend (who is new to parenting) on an errand to get my 3 year old son's hair cut while I worked on ..well work stuff. They came home and my son, Tristan yelled from the front door, "Mommy don't be mad at daddy.", and I'm thinking what the heck did they do... To my surprise, Tristan walked right on into my office mohawk and all. My only response to my boyfriend was, "Is this a joke?!" Turned out to be .. not so bad - and Tristan enjoyed spiking it with "jelly" :) If you can get to this link - http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/view?uname=nmyatkins&isOwner=true&subjectids=0csi6T_ba-vp6y9_YjFXYv---uUh9jWw-gLMufiKbfw#5338347035217569074

First, I love the mohawk. I don't know how I'll feel about it when it's my son, but on yours--I think it is awesome.

Secondly, you know you're missing an option about the baby's pacifier dropping on the ground, and I can't believe no one has called you on it. Maybe it should be B 1/2: You pick it up, stick it in your own mouth to clean it, and then give it back to the baby. Yes, you know you've done it, too.

my answers: 1: B, but he would have to compromise, he pays for it by saving up his one dollar month allowance, by the time he can pay, he'll have forgotten it 2: A 3: B 4: A, considering I'm the same age as savannah, i'm goin with A

That is too funny! I remember when my then four year old daughter and her best friend gave themselves hair cuts -- that ended up looking much like this, unfortunately (mohawks just don't sit so well on girls).

Look at that cheeky grin! He is either very brave or very stupid to be so excited about this new hair style. If he's anything like my gang, I'm guessing a little bit of both.

So, did you fix it yet or let it stay? My initial gut reaction would be to grab the clippers and give him a complete buzz. My non off-the-cuff reaction would be to make him walk around like that for a little while and endure the same that comes with it. And the shame will come. It might take 20 years, but it will come!

And you must be peaking in my windows because my kids are forever taking the cushions off my couch no matter how much I holler at them that it is not allowed. We have a couch on our porch (how redneck of us!) because it wouldn't fit in the front door when we moved in. My plan is to vacuum it and clean it really well and put a pretty slip cover on it when we move into our next house and put it in the living room. But my kids keep taking the cushions and piling them under the tree in the front yard. I'm pretty sure I don't have to tell you what comes next!

Too funny.... nice to know I'm not alone. My 17 year old son gave his 13 year old brother a mohawk. That rated right up there with my older son (16 at the time) letting a girl dye his perfect, golden blond hair jet black. Why... just because Mom. I promise you folks, older ones can be just as creative!! In the end, the mohawk looked awesome, the color black grew on me, and neither was really a big deal.

My sons are 20,17,& 13, believe me when I say there are much bigger battles to fight than hair!!